Sanding glove

ABSTRACT

The present invention is directed to a novel sanding system for sculptures. The sanding system comprising a glove body and grit coating applied to different portions of the outer surface area of the glove body.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to an improved sanding system forsculptures, and in particular, relates to modified gloves for sanding.

BACKGROUND

The sculpture refers to the art of making two- or three-dimensionalrepresentative or abstract forms, especially by carving stone or wood orby casting metal or plaster. It involves the art of forming an objectrepresenting the relationship of a subject body to space. In carving, apiece of stone, wood or other sculpture material of suitable size isused as a base. And with the help of machines and tools, the desiredrepresentation is carved out of the base. Various methods and tools ofthe carving are known in the art. The known methods generally includethe steps of grounding, modeling, detailing and finishing. The last stepin carving, the finishing, involves smoothening the surface of thesculpture. Typically, the surface of the sculpture is sanded usingsandpaper.

The sandpaper is a kraft paper having a coating of an abrasive layer.The abrasives, also known as grits, are bonded to the kraft paper usingan adhesive. The grits have sharp edges that cut down a material causingeither the surface smoother or removes a layer of material from thesurface. The sandpaper is produced in a range of abrasive particle sizesidentified by a grit number. Grit number is a number inversely relatedto the particle size of the abrasives. The higher the grit number isequivalent to a finer abrasive, which creates smoother surface finishes.Lower grit numbers represent coarser abrasives that scrape off materialsmuch quicker.

Thus, a key consideration in selecting sandpaper for a particular taskis the grit number of the sandpaper. In the finishing of the sculpture,the artist generally progresses from coarse grit to a finer smoothness.The commonly used sandpapers are of grit numbers include #60-#80(coarse) cuts through the rough edges with relative ease, #100-#150(medium) is most often used for sanding bare wood surfaces inpreparation for finishing, #180-#220 fine) is typically used for secondand third sanding unless the surface is already smooth to touch, and#320 and up (Ultrafine) is used for extra smoothness. The grit numbersare standardized based on the average particle size of the grits. TheUnited States CAMI (Coated Abrasive Manufacturers Institute, now part ofthe Unified Abrasives Manufacturer's Association) is the most usedstandard and the above grit numbers are based on the CAMI standard.Also, hereinafter in the specification, the grit numbers will bespecified according to the CAMI standards.

Sanding of the sculptures is laborious and a time-consuming processbecause of the complex shape of the sculpture, finer details and limitedfreedom of the hand while sanding the sculpture. Also, the creatorsgenerally wear gloves to protect their hands. Holding the sandpaper withthe gloves makes the sanding more difficult. Thus, there is a long-feltneed for an improved sanding system for sculptures that is convenient touse.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The principal objective of the present invention is therefore directedto a sanding system for sculptures.

Another objective of the present invention is that the sanding systemoffers an individual the ability to use the curvature of their hands tosand any sculpting project.

Still another objective of the present invention is that the sandingsystem allows a user to access hard to reach areas for sanding.

An additional objective of the present invention is that the sandingsystem eliminates the need to fold and unfold a piece of sandpaper whilesmoothing out fine details of the sculpture.

Still an additional objective of the present invention is that thesanding system is economical to manufacture and use.

A further objective of the present invention is that the sanding systemcan be used for both wet sanding and dry sanding.

Yet another objective of the present invention is that the sandingsystem makes the sanding of wood, metal or plaster sculptures mucheasier.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying figures, which are incorporated herein, form part ofthe specification and illustrate embodiments of the present invention.Together with the description, the figures further explain theprinciples of the present invention and to enable a person skilled inthe relevant arts to make and use the invention.

FIG. 1 illustrates a front side of a sanding system according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a rear side of the sanding system, according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front side of the sanding system according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Subject matter will now be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, andwhich show, by way of illustration, specific exemplary embodiments.Subject matter may, however, be embodied in a variety of different formsand, therefore, covered or claimed subject matter is intended to beconstrued as not being limited to any exemplary embodiments set forthherein; exemplary embodiments are provided merely to be illustrative.Likewise, a reasonably broad scope for claimed or covered subject matteris intended. Among other things, for example, the subject matter may beembodied as methods, devices, components, or systems. The followingdetailed description is, therefore, not intended to be taken in alimiting sense.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example,instance, or illustration.” Any embodiment described herein as“exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred oradvantageous over other embodiments. Likewise, the term “embodiments ofthe present invention” does not require that all embodiments of theinvention include the discussed feature, advantage or mode of operation.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of embodiments ofthe invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the”are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the contextclearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that theterms “comprises”, “comprising,”, “includes” and/or “including”, whenused herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps,operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude thepresence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps,operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

The following detailed description includes the best currentlycontemplated mode or modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of theinvention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense but ismade merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles ofthe invention, since the scope of the invention will be best defined bythe allowed claims of any resulting patent.

The present invention is directed to a sanding system that allows anindividual to use the curvature of their hands to sand wood, metal andplaster sculptures. Referring to FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of thepresent invention. The sanding system 100 includes a glove body 105 forengaging a hand of a user. The glove body 105 shown in FIG. 1 is for theleft hand of the user and includes finger and thumb to covers the fullhand of the user. A similar glove body can also be manufactured for theright hand of the user. FIG. 1 shows the front face of the glove body105. The glove body 105 having an opening (not shown) to receive thehand and an optional cuff 140 to retain the glove body 105 on the hand.The glove body 105 is having a palm area 110, front finger area 120, andfront thumb area 130. FIG. 2 shows a rear face of the glove body 105having a rear fingers area 140, a rear thumb area 150, and a rear area160.

FIG. 1 shows a coating of grit material applied over the front fingerarea 120 and the palm area 110. FIG. 2 shows the coating of gritmaterial over the rear finger areas 140. FIG. 3 shows an alternateembodiment of the present invention wherein a continuous coating of thegrit material is applied over the front face of the glove body i.e.including the palm area, the finger area, and the thumb area. Thus,depending upon the intended use of the sanding system, in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention, the grit coating can beapplied to any portion(s) of the outer surface area of the glove body.In one case, the grit coating is applied to the whole outer surface areaof the glove body including the rear area. In another case, grit coatingcan be applied only on the front face of the glove body. Yet in anothercase, the grit coating can be applied on the front face and tips of therear finger area. The grit coating can have a different color than thecolor of the glove body to distinguish the grit areas from the plainarea of the glove of body.

The composition of grits is obvious to a skilled person for sandingsurfaces. For example, known sanding materials include garnet, aluminumoxide, silicon carbide, chromium (III) oxide, diamond, and ceramicaluminum oxide. The choice of the grit material depends upon the costand objective of the sanding, for example, garnet is commonly used forwoodworking. Sanding system 100 according to the present inventionencompasses all types of grit material known to a skilled person forsanding surfaces of sculptures. Also, it is within the scope of thepresent invention to use a combination of grit materials in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention. For example, different gritmaterial could be applied to the palm area and the finger area. In onecase, the thumb front area can have a different grit material than thepalm and front finger areas. The sanding system having different gritmaterials can be produced to cater to different sanding needs of theuser. Moreover, the left and right glove bodies can be manufacturedhaving different grit materials.

In a preferred embodiment, the material of the glove body can beneoprene, while the grit areas can have a coating of rubber orpolyurethane. The cuff can be made of a knitted material. Although in apreferred embodiment, the glove body can be made of neoprene material,it is within the scope of the present invention to use any othermaterial known to a skilled person for the manufacture of workinggloves. It is also preferable to use a material that allow enoughbreathing of the glove body to allow the hand to remain comfortable anddry and prevent the buildup of humidity. The lowering of the heatbuildup also increases the comfort level of the hand in the glove body.Alternatively, the glove body can also be provided with an inner layerof a sweat wicking material. The glove body material could be a strongenough to prevent injury to the hands while working. Thus, the sandingsystem in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention doubleup as a wok glove and be used to protect the hand and enhanced grip ofthe hands to hold the objects. It is preferable that the material of theglove body also provides sufficient flexibility to the hands to sandcomplex and hard to reach areas. The glove body can be manufactured indifferent sizes to fit different hand sizes. For example, the glove bodycan be produced in sizes including extra small, small, medium, large,and extra-large. Such sizes can be the standard sizes for glovesavailable commercially that fits most of the sizes of hands.

The grit material can be applied as a coating to desired outer surfaceof the glove body. In one case, the grit particles can be infused intothe rubber or polyurethane layer. For example, a layer of rubber orpolyurethane having grit particles can be applied over a portion ofouter surface area of the glove body and cured thereafter. In anothercase, a layer of the rubber or polyurethane is applied to desiredportions of the outer surface areas of the glove body and thereafter theglove particles can be applied over the rubber/polyurethane layer.Thereafter, the layer having the grit particles can be cured. Yet inanother case, the grit particles can be applied to the surface of glovebody using an adhesive layer.

The sanding system according the present invention can be producedhaving different degree of grit numbers. For example, grit coatings ofdifferent particle sizes (grit numbers) can be applied to the glovebody. The sanding systems could be manufactured having the grit numbersincluding #60, #120, #180, #220 and like. Furthermore, grit coatinghaving a range of particle size can also be applied to the glove body.In one case, the grit coating is coarse having a grit number in therange of #60-#80. In another case, the grit coating is medium having agrit number in the range of #100-#150. Still in another case, the gritcoating is fine having a grit number in the range of #180-#220. Yet, inanother case, the grit coating is ultrafine having a grit number #320 orabove. Thus, the user can choose the sanding system of a particular gritnumber or a range of grit numbers. For example, the user wishing tosmoothen a surface of an object can select the coarse sanding systemhaving the grit number in the range of #60-#80. The user can interchangethe sanding system of different grit numbers from coarse to superfinefor completing the finishing of the sculpture.

In a preferred embodiment, the glove body can be provided with gritcoatings of different particle sizes. i.e. different areas of the glovebody can have grit coating of different grit numbers. In one case, thefront thumb area can have a coarse grit coating and the palm area andthe front finger area can have a fine grit coating. In another case, thefront thumb area can have a coarse grit coating, the palm area and thefront finger area can have a fine grit coating and the rear finger areacan have a medium coating. This combination may allow a user to smoothenthe surface of the sculpture using the palm area and the front fingerarea. And if any area of the sculpture requires coarse sanding, thefront thumb area can be used. Similarly, for any surface area ofsculpture requiring medium grit sanding, the rear thumb area of thesanding system can be used. Thus, the user does not have to interchangethe sanding system in case the small area of the sculpture requiressanding with a different grit number. The areas of the glove havingcoatings of different grid numbers can be distinguished using a colorcode. For example, the front area of the thumb having coarse gritcoating can be cream color, the front area of the fingers and the areasof palm can be of a grey color, and the rear finger color having mediumcoating can be of black color. Different combinations of the grit numberrange and color code can be used to make specialized sanding systems inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

In one embodiment, the grit is uniformly applied to the front face ofthe glove and the tips of the rear finger area. Additionally, the gritlayer is having a different color than that of the glove body. The gritcan be of a predetermined size range. For example, the sanding systemscould be manufactured having the grit numbers including #60, #120, #180,#220 and like.

While the foregoing written description of the invention enables one ofordinary skill to make and use what is considered presently to be thebest mode thereof, those of ordinary skill will understand andappreciate the existence of variations, combinations, and equivalents ofthe specific embodiment, method, and examples herein. The inventionshould therefore not be limited by the above-described embodiment,method, and examples, but by all embodiments and methods within thescope and spirit of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed is:
 1. A sanding system comprising: a glove body, theglove body having a plurality of areas over the outer surface of theglove body, the plurality of areas comprising a palm area, a frontfinger area, a rear finger area, a front thumb area, a rear thumb areaand a rear area; and a grit coating applied to one or more of theplurality of areas, the grit coating comprising grit particlesconfigured for sanding and a layer configured to bond the grit particlesto the one or more of the plurality of areas.
 2. The sanding system ofclaim 1, wherein the grit particles are made of a material selected froma group consisting of garnet, aluminum oxide, silicon carbide, chromium(III) oxide, diamond, ceramic aluminum oxide, or a combination thereof.3. The sanding system of claim 1, wherein the glove body furthercomprises an opening for a hand and a cuff.
 4. The sanding system ofclaim 1, wherein the layer is of polyurethane.
 5. The sanding system ofclaim 1, wherein the layer is of rubber.
 6. The sanding system of claim1, wherein the layer is an adhesive.
 7. The sanding system of claim 1,wherein the grit particles are of a grit number in a range of 60-80. 8.The sanding system of claim 1, wherein the grit particles are of a gritnumber in a range of 100-150.
 9. The sanding system of claim 1, whereinthe grit particles are of a grit number in a range of 180-220.
 10. Thesanding system of claim 1, wherein the grit particles are of a gritnumber
 320. 11. The sanding system of claim 1, wherein the grit coatingis of a color different from a color of the glove body.
 12. The sandingsystem of claim 1, wherein a first grit coating is applied to the frontthumb area, a second grit coating is applied to the front finger areaand palm area, a third grit coating is applied to the rear finger area,wherein the first grit coating, the second grit coating, and the thirdgrit coating have different grit numbers.
 13. The sanding system ofclaim 12, wherein the first grit coating is a coarse grit coating havinga grit number in a range of 60-80.
 14. The sanding system of claim 12,wherein the second grit coating is a fine grit coating having a gritnumber in a range of 180-220.
 15. The sanding system of claim 12,wherein the third grit coating is a medium grit coating having a gritnumber in a range of 100-150.
 16. The sanding system of claim 12,wherein the glove body has a first color, the first grit coating has asecond color, the second grit coating has a third color, and the thirdgrit coating has a fourth color, wherein the first color, the secondcolor, third color, and the fourth color are different.
 17. The sandingsystem of claim 16, wherein the second color, third color, and thefourth color are based on a color code, wherein a color in the colorcode is related a predetermined grit number range.
 18. The sandingsystem of claim 1, wherein the grit coating is uniformly applied to afront face of the glove body, the grit coating having a different colorthan the glove body.
 19. The sanding system of claim 1, wherein the gritcoating is configured for wet sanding.
 20. The sanding system of claim1, wherein the grit coating is configured for dry sanding.